


Warm Heart

by thirty2flavors



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Comedy, F/M, Fluff, feat. a huge dog, literally just pure domestic fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-07
Updated: 2018-07-07
Packaged: 2019-06-06 21:32:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15203933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thirty2flavors/pseuds/thirty2flavors
Summary: The dog came about when Rhys casually mentioned his childhood pet. Sasha said, “Those are like hairy skags, right?” and Rhys’ horror drove him to spend three months scouring the EchoNet in search of puppies.After a late night at work, Rhys comes home to find his place next to Sasha in bed has been claimed by their dog.





	Warm Heart

**Author's Note:**

> I just... really think having a huge dog would suit Sasha. Shout out as well to everyone on discord for indulging me in this long enough to get here.

Rhys stood at the end of his bed, exhausted and undressed, and pondered his next move.

He knew what he wanted, which was sleep, immediately. After an incredibly long day of negotiations with an off-world distributor, right now, more than anything in the world, he craved the loving embrace of his soft, warm, wonderful bed. 

There were two roadblocks in his way.

The first was Sasha, whose Pandoran-bred paranoia had crafted the world’s lightest sleeper. Sasha disliked when Rhys worked so late that she went to sleep without him. Sasha especially disliked being woken up when Rhys came to bed after working so late. In the best of times, an angry Sasha was intimidating. Late at night, when exhaustion was high and rationality was low, she was a force of nature, and not one a sleepy Rhys was well-equipped to handle. He’d taken to climbing into bed with the skill and strategy of a Navy SEAL.

The second and much bigger roadblock was Ajax, the 120-pound dog currently occupying Rhys’ side of the bed.

Ajax had been a gift to Sasha nearly a year ago as part of Rhys’ ongoing quest to give Sasha tastes of the nice, normal life she’d never known but always wanted. It only seemed fair, now that she was stuck here indefinitely as Atlas got off the ground. 

Most of what he could offer her was depressingly simple: a nice bed, a steady income, fresh food from the biodome. A security system with moderate success at warding off bandits. Stability. 

The dog came about when Rhys casually mentioned his childhood pet. Sasha said, “Those are like hairy skags, right?” and Rhys’ horror drove him to spend three months scouring the EchoNet in search of puppies. 

It was his biggest gamble so far. He could remember sad commercials airing around holidays when he was a kid, warning against giving animals as gifts. He supposed they had a point. But it wasn’t as though Sasha, who barely had a concept of what a dog was, could have answered the question even if asked. Besides, having seen Sasha coo over a scythid, Rhys felt the odds were in his favour. 

The instant Ajax had wriggled into Sasha’s lap and sniffed her neck, Sasha burst into tears, and Rhys knew he’d been right.

The two had been inseparable ever since. Ajax had spent more of the last year being doted on, fawned over, cuddled and kissed by Sasha than Rhys had. Now, as one last indignity, Ajax had even claimed his spot in bed next to Sasha.

Not that Rhys was jealous of his own dog. That would be insane. 

With a brain addled by sleep deprivation, Rhys evaluated his three options.

Option one—kicking the dog off of the bed—was discarded quickly. There was no way Ajax would leave the bed without waking Sasha, and that defeated the whole point. Besides, if the large pile of drool accumulating on Rhys’ pillow was anything to go by, Ajax was enjoying himself. (Were Sasha awake to heckle him, Rhys knew she would say it looked no different from when he used it.) 

Option two was the empty patch at the foot of the bed, but after short contemplation, Rhys brushed it aside. Rhys’ height, typically a point of pride, now haunted him; the space was too small, no matter how tight a ball he managed to curl into. Plus, there was a frighteningly high probability of Sasha kicking him in the head. 

What remained was option three: the giant dog bed sitting, untouched, in the corner of the room.

Rhys stared at it for ten additional, reluctant seconds. He had work again the next morning, bright and early, so he wouldn’t be there very long. It wouldn’t be the most uncomfortable place he’d ever slept, he reasoned. Thanks to Pandora, it wouldn’t even be the least dignified. At least he had free movement of his limbs and there was no duct tape involved.

Besides, Ajax’s bed was very nice. Sasha had insisted.

Resigned, he walked to the dog bed and lowered himself gently onto the cushion. At least—

“Rhys,” came Sasha’s voice from the darkness. “Are you sleeping in the dog’s bed?”

On his hands and knees, Rhys froze and looked over reluctantly. Even the ECHO eye couldn’t see more of Sasha than the corner of her face, poking out from the hollow of her pillow. 

“I… um…” He cleared his throat. “Didn’t want to wake you.” 

It sounded stupid as he said it, and somehow felt even stupider in the second of silence that followed. Blood rushed to his face. 

Hidden in the darkness, Sasha burst into giggles.

“Oh my god, babe,” she said, and giggled more. One of her arms extended towards him over the edge of the bed, beckoning him closer. “Get over here, dummy.” 

Rhys stood up again, the monumental embarrassment diluted by sleepiness. “Sasha—” 

“Hey, budge up,” she said to Ajax, shoving him to the side with both hands; the dog allowed himself to be moved with a thump of his tail. 

Sasha rolled onto her side and patted the empty space next to her. It wasn’t very big, either, but it was certainly more appealing than the dog bed, and Rhys climbed into it gratefully. Sasha curled against him the second he laid down.

“I hate when you work this late,” she said, her breath hot on his neck as they shared her pillow. 

“Sorry,” he muttered, drowsy and warm. “Didn’t mean to wake you.”

“That’s not why I hate it.” Her nose brushed his skin. “I worry about you.” 

“Almost over. Contract’ll be in place by the end of the week.” Rhys couldn’t wait. 

“I hope so.” She kissed the base of his neck. “I miss you.”

“I dunno, seems like Ajax is keeping you company.”

“Don’t be jealous of a dog, Rhys.”

“I’m not,” said Rhys calmly, “I know you love me more.” He paused. “Right?”

“Well…” Sasha hummed. “It’s pretty close. But... ” 

Her hand snaked across his chest. It tweaked his nipple and traveled south for just a moment; Rhys shivered and pressed back against her on instinct, and Sasha’s hand came to rest on his hip. 

He felt her smile. 

“I think you’ve got a slight edge,” she finished. 

“Good. Hear…” The brag was interrupted by a yawn. He tried again. “Hear that, Ajax?” 

On the other side of the bed, still asleep on Rhys’ pillow, Ajax let out a quiet woof. 

“Yeah,” said Rhys. He yawned again. “Eat your heart out.”

Sasha’s thumb stroked Rhys’ hip. 

“Go to sleep, babe,” she said. 

Eyes already shut, wedged against the side of the bed, Rhys was way ahead of her.

**Author's Note:**

> Say hi on Tumblr: [@oodlyenough](http://oodlyenough.tumblr.com/)


End file.
